BRADENTON, Fla. — Dalton Houghton was one of a kind Tuesday.
The 23-year-old product of Lethbridge was the only offensive lineman on the field at IMG Academy for the first day of the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ mini-camp.
That gave Houghton the opportunity to work with Roughriders offensive line coach Stephen Sorrells while the rest of the 29 players on hand went about their business.
“Coming in, I wasn’t quite sure what was going to happen for the last two days,” said Houghton, who had attended a camp for unsigned free agents which the CFL’s Roughriders staged in the days before mini-camp. “(The coaches) said they were sending all the other (linemen) home from the first two, but they wanted to keep me around.
“It’s a little weird, but at the same time, it’s good. Being brand new to it, this will get me up to speed a little bit and get me a little bit of one-on-one time with Coach Sorrells so I can figure things out.”
Houghton is new to it because he’s a defensive lineman by trade; the 6-foot-4, 295-pounder played on the other side of the ball during his days at Minot State University.
He attended the CFL’s West regional combine in 2017, but wasn’t drafted or signed by a CFL team. After playing a year of semi-pro football in Fort McMurray, Alta., he decided to go to some open tryouts.
Houghton made an impression at a camp held by the Roughriders in Las Vegas, but not as a defensive lineman. He was asked to put on some weight and try out as an offensive lineman — so he did.
“It was a for-sure thing as soon as they said it,” Houghton said. “I just want to play. I knew it would be a big change and a challenge, but it’s a case of doing whatever you’ve got to do to get your foot in the door, first of all. Second of all, I’m still playing football and I still love to get out here and play around.”
On Tuesday, Houghton took part in some one-on-one drills against linebackers since there aren’t any defensive linemen at mini-camp. He had engaged in hand-to-hand combat with some D-linemen during the preceding camp, though, so he wasn’t completely unprepared for what the linebackers threw at him.
“It’s definitely different and it kind of gets in your head a little bit,” Houghton said of playing on the O-line. “The technique’s a lot different — and going backwards is a lot different for sure.
“But I’m still one of the big boys up front, so a lot of the stuff carries over. It’s just a matter of being able to get the technique down and being able to do it fast. There isn’t a lot of time to think when you’ve got guys coming at you. You can do it all you want on air, but when you’ve got someone coming at you, it’s a matter of repetition and being able to do it without thinking.”
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Houghton was one of 22 players signed by the Roughriders before mini-camp opened. The converted D-lineman and defensive back Tristan MacDonald-Doughlin were the only national players inked.
The other signees were running backs Wes Brown, Christian Ellison and I’Tavius Mathers, wide receivers Teldrick Morgan, Damond Powell, Jeremy Tabuyo, Da’Rick Rogers, Tyrian Taylor and Jordan Williams-Lambert, defensive backs Jeremy Cutrer, Orlandus Harris, Rudy Johnson, William Johnson Jr., Nick Marshall, DeAndre Smith and Drew Powell, and linebackers Chad Geter, Kalen Jackson, Tyrell Robinson and Eric Striker.
The Roughriders’ staff had seen most if not all of those players at free-agent camps, so Tuesday’s workout marked the hopefuls’ first chance to make an impression in a practice setting.
“There’s a lot of guys we saw at the workouts who are really athletic and that type of thing,” said Roughriders head coach-GM Chris Jones. “But when you can have them in practice and rep them over and over and over and over, it gives you a little bit more of an understanding (of) ‘Can the guy’s legs hold up or is he one of those guys who’s going to fatigue and maybe his level of play falls off or whatever?’
“The more we can rep them, the better deduction we can have as to whether or not they can be one of what we need.”
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Rudy Johnson was one of those who didn’t make it through the practice, leaving early with a leg injury.
Ellison, Harris and Rogers also suffered injuries, as did a couple of NFL veterans in receivers Jacoby Ford and Shaq Evans.
T.J. Thorpe, who signed with Saskatchewan last season after being released by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, also missed some time during Tuesday’s workout before returning in the latter stages.
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The Roughriders released four players Tuesday, including a pair of offensive linemen.
Ten-year CFL veteran Peter Dyakowski, who started all 18 regular-season games in 2017, was let go. So was Eddie Meredith, whom Saskatchewan selected in the 2017 CFL draft.
Defensive back Jeff Hecht, who played in 18 games in the 2017 regular season, and linebacker Taylor Mays also were released.
Like the 34-year-old Dyakowski, Hecht, 32, was a CFL veteran. He began his career in 2011 with the Montreal Alouettes.
“The salary cap forces you into some things like that,” Jones said when asked about releasing the two veterans. “Those two guys have played a lot of football over the years. They’re older guys on our team (and they) brought a lot of leadership. We wish them the very best.”
